Thursday, January 28, 2010

Naxos Video Library Development Updates

Hello Friends!

We wanted to take a few moments and update you on some of the exciting new features implemented into the Naxos Video Library over the past few weeks!

  • Mouse-over, DVD Highlights!

Now, when you mouse over any work in the NVL, a small "box" will appear with a work synopsis, and any other noteable features of the DVD. In the case of Carmen below, you can see that included in the NVL, are the Bonus Features!


  • Skip By Chapter!
Just like a standard DVD, you're now able to skip ahead through a video by chapter. Mousing over the "Play" button, will allow you to view the Skip buttons. Move your mouse off of the "Play" button, and the skip buttons disappear into the abyss (leaving you more room for wonderful Opera and Ballet of course!)


  • Where am I?
No more confusion about what chapter you're in, or where in the Opera you just "skipped" to! Simply open the Chapters tab, and look for the wonderful new Film Strip icon, and you'll know instantly where you are!



Do you have a suggestion for the NVL? Are there features you'd like to see implemented? If so, you can e-mail us at Naxos, or leave a comment!

Congratulations and Welcome to our first two subscribers! The folks at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities - and Douglas College have already made the NVL a part of their offerings! Enjoy all that the NVL has to offer!



- Nick

Nick@NaxosUSA.com
615.465.3836



Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Check it out!

Great recordings in the Naxos Music Library

The Naxos Music Library is an extraordinary resource. I’ve been a fan since my undergraduate years when I worked in my university’s music library. Now I work for Naxos Music Library full-time and have unlimited access to some of the world’s best classical music 24-7! I’ve discovered a lot of new music since joining the NML team, both through my own perusal and recommendations from subscribers world-wide. With a constantly growing selection of almost 40,000 CD’s, it’s easy to gloss over some worthwhile pieces and recordings.
For this reason I’ve decided to compile a weekly playlist of pieces that deserve a bit of extra attention. Perhaps some of these pieces will be old news to you. Perhaps you will not like some of my suggestions, but the hope is that we’ll all spend a little more time with classical music and discover a few new favorites that would have otherwise remained unknown to us.

Week of 11-15 January 2010
Symphonies

1. Georg Christoph Wagenseil—Symphony in C, Op. 5, No. 5, WV361 (777112-2) I’ve had a soft-spot for Wagenseil ever since my Classical Symphony class in Vienna. His symphonies are short, sweet, and were dwarfed by Haydn, Mozart and other Classical composers who advanced the genre; however, as my prof used to say, “The symphony had to start somewhere.”
2. Johann Christian Bach—Sinfonia for Double Orchestra in D, Op. 18, No. 3 (8.553367)
3. Zdenek Fibich—Symphony No. 1 in F, Op. 17 (8.553699)
4. Gloria Coates—Symphony No. 15, “Homage to Mozart” (8.559371) The most prolific female symphonist in history certainly deserves more recognition. Liner notes for this CD are especially interesting.
5. Herman Berlinski—Symphonic Visions (8.559446)
6. William Schuman—Symphony No. 3 and Symphony No. 5 (8.559317)
7. William Grant Still—Afro-American Symphony (BCD9086) This has been my favorite symphony for 2 years now. Still’s Americana and use of a solo banjo are brilliant.
8. Alan Hovhaness—Symphony No. 63 “Loon Lake”, Op. 411 (8.559336) Alan Hovhaness wrote 67 symphonies, among many other works. Like all prolific composers, some of his works have faded into the background of his vast output. His 63rd symphony caught my attention because of the unique sounds (sounds of the loon and bird-songs) and beautiful flute/piccolo parts.
9. Bedrich Smetana—Festive Symphony (8.223120) Smetana played a large role in establishing a Czech national sound. This is one of his lesser-known works, and I enjoyed getting acquainted with it.
10. Vincent Persichetti—Symphony No. 8, Op. 106 (FECD-0034)